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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Western Christianity has a huge amount of sacred music that is used as a pathway to praising God. That is its purpose. Yet you can still sing that music as an atheist and not be engaged in prayer. You are just singing beautiful music.

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And yet that sacred music is still Christian in spirit. Why is everyone missing the point being made on the thread? Everyone can practice yoga and benefit from it. Yet yoga is still Hindu in spirit. Practicing physical yoga doesn't make you Hindu so why is everyone afraid to acknowledge that yoga is Hindu in origin? Afraid or resistant to acknowledge that yoga was developed, nurtured, and protected by Hindus all these thousands of years? If it wasn't for Hindus practicing and preserving the asanas all these thousands of years, it would've been lost to time like so many others. And so then why is it unreasonable for Hindus to say yoga is Hindu? Just about every Hindu scripture including Gita mentions yoga numerous times in their texts.

Go ahead and practice and enjoy the many benefits of yoga. It's a gift from Hindus to the world.

Np. 
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[b]I don't think anyone is denying the history of yoga.[/b] Just denying that it cannot be incorporated in other spiritual practices or even [b]despiritualized[/b].   Similarly I am not sure what it means to say that music is Christian in spirit.  I can hum a Bach oratorio, while fully denying the divinity and messiahship of Christ.   To the extent that the Bach oratorio is more than a beautiful set of notes, it is a generalized ethereal joy. Ethereal joy may have been connected to Christ for Bach, but it can be connected to other things for others.

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Because of their long history, scriptural and spiritual connection with yoga, it is sacred to Hindus and they are understandably upset to see it disrespected and dissassociated with Hinduism. Swastika was already "despiritualized" and trashed a long time ago. Hindu idols have been turned into decorative pieces. This is the sort of disrespect and disregard that breeds extremists. Would the members of Abrahamic religions allow their sacred symbols, artifacts, and figures such as the cross, Jesus, Mohammad, Allah, Torah be trashed without speaking up about it or even take some offense with it?

At the time of yoga's introduction to the west, it was mostly first gen Indians living here who couldn't defend or see what was coming. They were mostly powerless and trying to establish themselves in a new unfamiliar world. The second and third generation Hindus, with their familiarity of western history and more means, are rightfully speaking out about it.

(The French control their wines, cheese etc. with their A.O.C stamp of approval. The Italians with their D.O.C stamp. Japan is in the process of regulating what can be called sushi and what doesn't qualify. They do this because they value these products that have a special meaning in their respective cultures. Hindus similarly value yoga and is the reason it was kept alive for thousands of years. Does all the regulating mean that there won't be imitations and that others don't value them for other reasons? Of course not! Italian San Marzano tomatoes grown in the Valle del Sarno gets the D.O.P stamp whereas the rest are just labeled Italian tomatoes from San Marzano region or just San Marzano tomatoes from Italy etc. San Marzano is a variety of tomato and can be grown anywhere. Farmers in our area grow them and sell them at a premium price at the farmer's markets. Anyone who has tasted both the farmer's markets tomatoes and the D.O.C would agree that the former are a poor imitation of the latter. Roma tomatoes are a cross between San Marzano and two other tomatoes. They are good in their own right but are they San Marzano tomatoes? This is the the point that OP makes: that yoga as practiced in the west is a poor imitation of the real one. Perhaps she should work with the Indian embassy or the Indian government in coming up with a regulation for yoga.)

Done and out.

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